They (the Irish financial sector) can be heroes, just for one day… February 20, 2009
Posted by WorldbyStorm in Economics, Economy, Irish Politics, Uncategorized.trackback
Most entertained was I by today’s ‘interview’ with a bullish, an overly so frankly, Ulick McEvaddy (Libertas watchers alert, McEvaddy is an outspoken supporter of that formation). First up was his description of the Anglo Irish 10 as ‘heroes’. Ahem. Secondly was his impassioned declaration that had he been invited he would have joined them… to support ‘an iconic bank’… no, more than that… ‘a very valuable institution’. Of course, he thought they’d put up €300 million and now we learn that it was €451 million. A truly heroic feat. But one which McEvaddy seems curiously unable to understand incurred potential losses to the taxpayer. Or was arguably illegal under the laws of this state.
Or as the Irish Times put it:
And how about this?
The regulator has been “astonished to discover that the deal is very different to what was presented [to it] initially”, one source said.
Not so heroic.
Undeterred the brave Ulick suggested that firing such paragons of financial virtue as Sean FitzPatrick was akin to Iran purging its generals during the Iran/Iraq war with predictable consequences, and that it was indeed FitzPatrick and Denis Casey and others of that ilk who were absolutely necessary to fix the mess and fight for ‘an economy that is at war’.
All very interesting, no doubt, but the problem is from – say – my perspective, who is this economy is at war with?
I’d hazard a guess that it is that self-same financial class who expertly saw the sector hit the rocks… at least in part and ensured that when it came to the global crunch we were utterly unprepared as a state to deal with the crisis.
And here’s a further question. What precisely is Ulick McEvaddy’s expertise in running an economy? Or indeed a bank? Or indeed anything other than a large aircraft sales and lease operation. And what precisely are the qualifications that allowed him to be given a hearing that , considering what he was stating on Pat Kenny this morning on RTÉ, was entirely undeserved and bordered on the obsequious?
Still, when one has ‘heroism’, when one regards oneself as amongst such heroes and when one is clearly is missing the point big time, or perhaps engaging in a massive example of handwaving for God knows what purpose… who needs expertise?
Congratulations on not mentioning swingers and HIV, a most inappropriate analogy, that Ulick used this morning. RTE and most of the media have been so disappointing in putting forward any new thinking in a time when people are so eager to hear it. The trio on the Late Late show a few weeks was indicative of this.
Inappropriate indeed, but it had Pat and Ulick chuckling over it…
Libertas should make enquires for permission to use Bonnie Tyler’s “Holding Out for a Hero” as their campaign theme for Lisbon II……
I wonder does it give the Fine Gael powers-that-be an itchy bottom to have someone who was previously such a high-profile activist for them first hopping on the Ganley bus and now speaking out so completely at odds with our-fine-leader Enda Kenny’s stumblings in the Dáil.
I’d love to have been offered the chance to be a hero
Take out a loan with only 25% secured by my assets for what looked like a pretty nice investment at the time? Yes please.
However, speaking from an even less-informed position than Ulick as to how a bank should be run, I actually think all these top executives shouldn’t be allowed to resign. They should be forced to remain in position, with massive oversight of their actions, until we start coming out of this mess. They are the people who know most about how the banking industry works, and unpleasant as it may be, they are the ones best positioned to implement measures necessary to get us out of this.
What are those measures? Haven’t a clue, but a complete replacement of the top executives in the industry is only going to make it harder for us to get out of this.
I sort of agree with you in a way. Most disturbing is how we’re now being told that in order for regulation to be appropriate we may have to buy in expertise from overseas. I mean… what???
And here’s a further question. What precisely is Ulick McEvaddy’s expertise in running an economy? Or indeed a bank? Or indeed anything other than a large aircraft sales and lease operation. And what precisely are the qualifications that allowed him to be given a hearing that , considering what he was stating on Pat Kenny this morning on RTÉ, was entirely undeserved and bordered on the obsequious?
McEvaddy is reputedly a former member of G2, the Irish Army intelligence service (before that an Equitation officer, no less – that part of our free subsidies to the horsey set that rides about in green unfiforms). Still, quite a lot of deadwood got sucked up into the officer corps in the Seventies, and he only managed to get in on a nag…?
http://www.thepost.ie/post/text/story.asp?document_id=20347&category_name=PROFILE
http://www.independent.ie/national-news/brothers-with-altitude-400889.html
By the way, I marched today – did you? Sound off, folks…
Sure did, a good day for worker solidarity. Let’s hope it’s built upon.
Interesting McEvaddy was a former ‘posh jockey’, he sure knows how to mount up on the working class! One good thing, that comment will haunt him for the rest of his days!
McEvaddy is a business partner of Greg Sparks in property development.
Sparks was hired by the Labour Party to write a report advocating that Labour loosen its links with the unions.
Perhaps this gives McEvaddy some insight into Irish political economy.
http://www.independent.ie/business/european/mcevaddy-heads-8364600m-development-in-berlin-1324806.html
Re the demo, unfortunately I wasn’t able to be there, but delired on the turnout. However, as many here and elsewhere have asked, what next? The Labour Party w/e meeting raised many of the issues the the 100k want dealt with, but has the Party actually started to plan for it? Not much evidence, too busy making political points in the Dail?
IMO, the party should now more or less retire from the pointlessness of the Dail and the govt output generally, after all they put in the second division Ryan last night, whom Burton suspected hadn’t even been given sight of the PWC report.
The Left must now set out its stall for becoming the leaders of policy on the economy for the future. In that, ICTU et al have to be brought on side, taking the Begg line and not the O’Connor line, i.e give up the capitalist v worker ideological arguments and putting forward valid economic arguments where banks are permitted to make profits, but not as a result of running casinos, for example.
Tilting at the likes of McEvaddy is a waste of time, regardless of his partners. McE makes good copy, of the wrong kind, for a media which has no more ides on what to do than our so-called leaders.
Let the Left use last Saturday as a springboard to a new economic/policy framework. Have a look at the presentations at the Labour w/e meeting if you want to seen the alternatives if we dont; cf the IMF arriving…..
We have no certainty – and as we saw recently – bankers only get fired for making loans…not for “Not making loans” – so who’s going to ensure that the right people will get the money to save and ensure we have these jobs, jobs that will create employment and pay taxes, reducing the welfare burden on the state!